Portrait of Mr. E, by Isabella E.

Upcoming December Events

Dec 1 Hamilton Karaoke Beye-In PartyDec 6 Reading OlympicsDec 9 Cookie Exchange Beye-In PartyDec 10 Holiday Elves & Beer Beye-In PartyDec 11 Green Team’s ReGift/BeGift WorkshopDec 15 Principal CoffeeDec 18 Talent Show Auditions (grades 3-5)Dec 19 Talent Show Auditions (grades K-2)Dec 20 Winter Festival of MusicDec 22 Beye School Health Fair

November is here and that means a guaranteed pause in the 2017-18 school year. The end of the first trimester was Nov. 17th, and with a third of the year now behind us, we should all be thinking about the things we hope will keep chugging right along the rest of this year, as well as a few things we know need and deserve some reflection and re-direction. The report card that will come your way on December 9th is a great opportunity to connect with your child and your teacher about where we are and where we’re going. The next guaranteed check-in point will be conferences that occur at the beginning of Feb-ruary. There’s never a bad time to set some goals and make a plan to realize them!

The change in the weather always brings an increase in the number of items in our lost and found pile. To remind you, clothing that’s been lost goes to the lockers outside the office and lunch box-es, water bottles and other lunch accessories generally stay in a tub in the commons. Pretty much without exception, items that are labeled are returned to the owner and don’t stay in the lost found for long. So the moral of that story is LABEL EVERYTHING!!! A black sharpie is the tool of choice, but if you’re looking for an upgrade and a chance to help the PTO out as well, you might consider Mabel’s Labels. These dishwasher-safe, microwave-safe, waterproof labels will help make sure you always get your stuff back and they’ll bring in

a few bucks for the PTO too. Visit mabelslables.com and select Beye School to credit the PTO.

Safety is always a top priority here at Beye and that includes food safe-ty. As a reminder, no food treats are allowed for birthdays, ever, though little tchotchkes are OK if you arrange that with your teacher.

Please also remember that snacks must always be nut free, since sometimes classes may stay in for recess and all classrooms are nut safe areas. When students have a snack outside, the only area des-ignated for eating snacks is the deck. No food should be consumed anywhere else. In the lunchroom, we continue to have a nut-free table where students with allergies and their friends may eat safely. That means only students with a hot lunch from school or a lunch packed from home without nuts of any kind may eat at that nut free ta-ble. Finally, on special days where a classroom is celebrating (like

Halloween a few weeks back or the day before winter break coming up in a few weeks) only food that has been cleared with the teacher should be coming and that food should be fruits, veggies or store bought items with an ingredient list free from nuts and confirmation that the facility was also free from nut contamination. If you’re ever wondering, ask! Nurse Shilpa is al-ways your first/best reference after your teacher.

The diversity council that’s con-nected to the PTO was formed this year to increase family engagement and to look for ways that more parents could be more connected and involved. To that end, and in response to the summer survey they conducted and our school improvement plan, we’re hosting a math morning on January 20th that will help parents to learn more about how we’re teaching math, how students are learning math, and how best to support the teach-ing and learning. Breakfast will be served and we hope you’ll come and get equipped to help the bud-

November 20172

principal’s letter continued...

ding mathematician at your house!Our PTO makes it possible each year for us to host children’s enrichment assemblies that augment the learning for all our students. This month it was time for Opera for the Young to come and perform for and with our students. Opera, like so many things, is something we are likely to dislike unless we try it, so it was truly wonderful to see the auditorium packed with smiling faces, happy to see and hear a story in song. A special nod of appreciation to Mrs. Rosenblum and Ms. Karia for getting us ready to perform and be a great audience.

Speaking of singing, please consider bringing your entire family to the Hamilton Sing-Along on Fri-day, December 1st at 6:00 pm. Samina Hadi-Tabassum and I will be hosting this Beye-In party and we hope to pack the auditorium with singers of all ages! There’ll be singing, readings, karaoke, live accom-paniment and lot and lots of fun! There will also be pizza and refreshments for sale, so no one will go hungry! Talent is not required, so take all that time you’ve spent listening to Hamilton in your car and put it to good use! :-)

It’s impossible to approach the Thanksgiving holiday without taking the opportunity to be truly thank-ful for the many, many blessings we have here at Beye School. Smart, sweet students, talented, totally committed faculty members, progressive, participatory parents and a fabulous facility all make this a place that we can look forward to coming to each day. I appreciate you and your willingness to read this column(!), your commitment to communicate the successes and shortcomings you see here, and your partnership and patience with everything we do. Together we take Beye School and we make it our own. We extend and expand a legacy that stretches back 138 years and that will extend long beyond our time at 230 N. Cuyler Ave. I am thankful to be the principal, here, now.

As always, please email, call or make an appointment to stop by with your questions, ideas, concerns and causes for celebration.

Sincerely,Jonathan Ellwanger

5th Grade Class Photo at Camp Edwards

3november 2017

news from the beye PTO & green team

http://www.beyeschoolpto.org

Dear Beye Families,

Where has the time gone? It feels like the school year just started, and yet the end of 2017 is quickly approaching. The holidays can be a mixed bag of excitement and stress, warmth and pain, activities and reflection. Donald Westlake captures the feeling of the season best with the following thoughts: “As we struggle with shopping lists and invitations, compounded by December’s bad weather, it is good to be reminded that there are people in our lives who are worth this aggravation, and people to whom we are worth the same.” May we hold and cherish these thoughts of the worth of our loved ones and ourselves during this time of year.

On a lighter note, please check out the list of upcoming Beye-In parties. Beye-In parties are a great way to have fun with your fellow Beye families. You not only get to make new friends and enjoy old ones, but you are also contributing to all the wonderful enrichment programs offered at Beye, spon-sored by the PTO. Check out the Beye Bytes, Thursday Packets or go to our website to find out all about the different parties and to sign up today.

Wishing you and yours a happy and healthy holiday season!Stephanie Kloster-De La Rosa and Denise Franta, Co-Presidents Beye PTO

Holiday Greenings!The Beye PTO Green Team Presents Holiday ReGift/BeGift Workshop!

Beye’s PTO Green Team asks all parents to encourage their children to participate in the ReGift/BeGift-themed workshop on Monday, December 11th at all lunch recess periods. Students are not required to register.

All students are invited to make coupon books to give to friends/family at the holidays, including coupons like: • Have hot cocoa with me, Grandma!• Let’s read a story together!• Can we take a walk together?

Participating students will also be given a local map to take home, showing all reuse/recycled/upcycled stores in our area for holiday giving ideas. We need parent volunteers to help run this activity. Please stay tuned to BeyeBytes and the Beye Families Facebook page to sign up for a slot. For questions, email beyegreen@gmail.com.

4 november 2017

district 97 divCo: Beye inclusion team update

Kick-off Event: Friendly Tap Open JamFriendly Tap in Berwyn was the place to be Friday, October 27 as the Beye Inclusion Team hosted the first Beye School Open Jam. Thanks to the PTO, Rob Pierce, owner of Friendly Tap, and a rag tag group of Beye students, we had pizza to fill our bellies and music to fill our ears. We spent time get-ting to know each other without an agenda or slides:). Look for more upcoming Beye Inclusion events focused on building community through music, food and fun.

Upcoming events: Math Day

Save the Date! Saturday, January 20 will be Math Day at Beye School. Come and spend some time with your child’s teacher and experience learning math first-hand from the expert. This program is de-signed to demystify the methods used by teachers to teach math and will be grade-specific. Bring your questions, a pencil and your curiosity. Childcare will be provided.

Potluck and Open Jam

Save the Date: Friday, February 2 will be the date for our second Beye Inclusion Open Jam. This time, bring your favorite covered dish and an instrument and come relax and enjoy the music and friendship. Children welcome. Hosted by the Walker Family, 135 N. Harvey Ave. 6-9 pm.

5november 2017

right at school

Happy Fall Season, Right Club family!The cold weather certainly snuck up on us; October was absolutely beau-tiful! But, along came Halloween’s wintry bite. That didn’t stop us from having a blast, of course!

Upon finishing the Brick Masters curriculum, the children were able to discover their creative prowess as they worked in groups and on indi-vidual projects to construct several designs for buildings, cargo/freight carriers, and even roads. As you can tell from the pictures below, they really got into their projects. Just ask Rocco, Esther, and Lila :-D !

We are currently doing our DIY curriculum, where we share pictures and descriptions of several structures and allow the children to build on those examples and let their imaginations take them wher-ever they may! We cannot wait to see what they come up with, and of course, to share their creations with you.

We are planning on having a holiday celebration before Winter Break, and would like to know your thoughts on doing a Secret Santa with the children. We have had it for the past couple of years, but understand the holidays can be a little tough on the wallet. Our maximum limit was $15, but it is definitely negotiable. Also, please let me (Mimi) know if you would rather your child opt out. I will ensure that everyone has an enjoyable time no matter what.

Ms. Krystle is back with us after the sudden loss of her mom, and we are happy to have her back! She thanks everyone who offered their condolences, as well as those who helped to chip in for the floral arrangement. Thank you for pulling together as a community and making that happen.

Stay tuned for next month’s edition; bye for now!

Take care,Ms. Mimi & Ms. Krystle

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Beye PTO’s After School Enrichment Program with a Focus in Art and Science

http://www.beyeschoolpto.org/beye-discovery.htmlbeye.discovery@gmail.com

november 2017

BEYE DISCOVERY

See what’s new at Beye DiscoveryHighlights from mid-October through mid-November

Half Day, October 19th: We enjoyed a field trip to Trailside Museum and Nature Center in River Forest. Students visited with the animals; sketched pelts and skulls of local wildlife; participated in a nature walk & played in the outdoor exploration space where the children could build with branches, experiment at the water station, dig in the soil and engage in imaginative play with a variety of props and tools.

Half Day, October 20th: We visited Garfield Park Conservatory in Chicago. Students learned about va-nilla & chocolate plants ~ Did you know that vanilla is the 2nd most expensive spice in the world (after saffron) and that chocolate plants need tiny insects called “midges” to pollinate them? The midges, also called “no-see-ums,” live in the soil at the base of the plant. Students were thrilled when a conservato-ry staff member asked for their assistance to water plants and to feed the Koi in the Aroid House. Each of the plant houses offered the children something new to experience, although we must admit that the outdoor “Play & Grow Garden” was a definite favorite!

We prepared for Halloween by making themed mobiles, cards & origami. On Halloween, we enjoyed a small party, made skeleton “gingerdead” men with clay, and had a blast trick-or-treating. For Day of the Dead, we made alters using small boxes to honor a past loved one or pet. The alters were colorfully dec-orated and contained items such as candles, flowers and skeletons, all made from paper. Children were encouraged to include a sketched portrait of their loved one to adorn the alter.

Ms. Gillet’s “Barbara Kruger & The Big Questions Project” was inspired by an exhibition in which Artist Barbara Kruger joined forces with Los Angeles high school students to create large murals dis-playing “big questions” to provoke thought and discussion about issues today. Together, Beye Discov-ery students talked about rhetorical questions and what they thought were questions people in our com-munity should think about. After writing all their thoughtful questions on the white board, each student then chose a question to illustrate, using bold marker colors and images to draw attention to the ideas. This was a three-week project for our Thursday students, and we realized that young children have very deep and philosophical questions to ponder, such as “Why are we here?” “Who should you ask?” and “Who are we meant to be?”. “The Big Questions Project” will be on display in the main hallway near the office during the month of December. We hope you will stop by to have a look and to ponder some of your own big questions!

7

BEYE DISCOVERY continued...

november 2017

With Thanksgiving around the corner, we devoted a couple days to explore “Gratitude” with our students. Scientific studies show that those who express gratitude are more likely to be happy, less materialistic, and to have a more positive attitude towards school and family. For our project, we made small, round gratitude journals or booklets. Students could use the journals to write or illustrate who or what they are grateful for. Or they could create a booklet for a special person, sharing why they are grateful to that person. Teachers, siblings, and parents are a few examples of whom the children are grateful.

Our Wednesday students are preparing for “Small Business Wednesday,” a cherished bi-annual event in Beye Discovery, inspired by Small Business Saturday. We discussed why shopping from small, local businesses is helpful to the local economy and identified some of our favorite small businesses in Oak Park and Forest Park, such as Geppettos Toy Store, Brown Cow Ice Cream, Sugar Fixe Patisserie, & Pumpkin Moon. Students are currently making items to sell in their shop/boutique. They will create their pop-up shop this December in Room 302 to sell their wares to each other. Each child has 10 pen-nies to shop with and on a “fun-factor” scale of 1 to 10, this has traditionally exceeded a “10.”

Beye Discovery is an enrichment program of the Beye PTO that offers children opportunities for exploration and growth through creative project-based learning in art and science. It is facilitated by Jocelyne Adkins, Program Director, and Maia Gillet, Teaching Assistant. For questions about Beye Discovery please contact: Jocelyne at beye.discovery@gmail.com or visit our Beye Discovery webpage at http://www.beyeschoolpto.org/beye-discovery.html

As promised last month, included are the photos from our Hawaiian Petrop-glyph-inspired lesson (left and above). (Far Top L) Elise, Hawaiian Petroglyph -inspired Clay Tablet; (Left) Hawaiian Artist Susanne Still, Petroglyph Clay Tablet; (Top L) David, Hawaiian Petroglyph-inspired Clay Tablet; (Top R) Max, Valen, Eva, Trailside Museum

8 november 2017

beye discovery continued...

Left Column, Barbara Kruger Inspired: (1st) Zander, ; (2nd) Salma; (3rd) Tariq: (4th) Ms. Gillet and Mekhi; Center, Garfield Park Con-servatory; (Top) Feeding Koi; (2nd Center) Zachary, Yusef, & Roberto

(3rd Center) Hank, Trailside Museum and Nature Center; (Bottom Center) Dakin, Small Business Wednesday; (Top R) Jose, Skull Illustration, Trailside Museum; Small Business Wednesday (2nd R) Blake; (3rd R) Anika; (4th Right) Sonia

9november 2017

beye-IN parties

10 november 2017

camp edwards

In October, Beye 5th graders were given the opportunity to enjoy all sorts of adventures during the annual trip to Camp Edwards, the original outdoor classroom for the Beye school community.

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turkey trot

november 2017

Turkey Trot Winners

3rd grade: 4th grade: 5th grade:valen n. & Claudia D. David D. & maisie C. quinn t., adam m. & genevieve s.

Mr E: @BeyeTheWayBeye School Familieswww.op97.org/beye

Editors: Jennifer Alten and Sara Neuner

Graphic Designers: Blake and Lindy Novotny 12

The Beyelines is an online and hard copy newsletter of Beye School that is distributed monthly in an effort to highlight activities and events that have already occurred at Beye School, both in the classroom and outside the classroom. Articles may be written by Beye School Parents, community members, teachers, and students.

All articles should be submitted to beyelines@beyeschoolpto.org.

BeyeBytes Newsletter: If you are not currently receiving BeyeBytes email newsletter and would like to be added to the list, please send and email to beyebytes@gmail.com.

november 2017

Beye School’s PTO fundraising team is looking for volunteers! Time commitments vary. Get involved as much as you would like. Meet new people and show your kids your school spirit. Visit the PTO home page and scroll down to the bottom of the page to indicate your interest(s): www.beyeschoolpto.org; www.beyeschoolpto.org/volunteer.html.

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5th Graders Canoeing at Camp Edwards